Black Knight

Chapter Eleven: Coming Clean

 

Edward sat in his clean house, waiting for Anita to show up. From all he'd been told she'd had some big changes in her life since their last joint mission. That wasn't to say that he hadn't. In the time that it had taken for him to completely recover he'd made many changes in his life. He'd subtlety secured Donna and the kids so that no one would try what his Uncle had again. He'd also drawn up a will, one for his persona and one for himself. The assets of the persona went to Donna and the kids, and Death's massive fortune was spread all over the place, among those he considered to be friends.

 

But today wasn't a day to be thinking of such things, tomorrow he married maybe the most singularly inappropriate women on the planet, for him at least. And last week he's been informed that he was now the ruler of a massive underground empire. Four days ago he'd been informed that Van Cleef was dead. That he finally had the ultimate freedom that he had craved his whole life. Let Van Cleef try to hurt him from beyond the gave, those loyal to him would soon be joining him.

 

Edward started from his thoughts at the knock on his door. It was probably Anita, even though she was early. He dragged himself from the comforting grip of his favorite chair to let her in.

 

"Ted," she said, as she studied him, "you somehow look different. Maybe the idea of marriage agrees with you."

 

"Implying, of course, that the same idea is not applicable to you. You look good, Anita. Maybe these last changes were what your life needed."

 

She smiled a little at him. "How come I'm not surprized that you know all about my life and I know nothing about yours?"

 

He closed the door and ushered her into the living room before answering. "I'm good at what I do, Anita. I have to be to survive."

 

"What is it that you do?" Edward could tell that she didn't really expect him to answer her question.

 

So she was surprized when he said, "Sit down and I'll tell you."

 

"I thought that you couldn't talk about it."

 

"Things change."

 

Anita sighed, "Just spit it out, Edward, whatever it is that you want to say, just say it."

 

"Alright, Anita. You know that I'm called Death, but you don't know the real reason why. And you know that I'm among the best in the world at what I do, but you don't know how or why. With one significant change in my life I can you all about that. Maybe it will help you understand why I'm marrying Donna."

 

"I hope so, Edward because I really think that you shouldn't do this."

 

"But I am, Anita. So, just sit and listen to why.

 

I was about three when my parents were murdered, and until many years later I didn't know what had happened to them. The man who had killed them was Van Cleef, and later I found out that he was my Uncle. He had killed his own brother because he didn't want to kill anymore. And before you jump in, I'm not giving up my guns tomorrow.

 

Now, I officially became a ward of my Uncle, and he moved me to some big ranch in Texas. That ranch is the world's biggest underground training centre for assassins, and the man who runs it was a monster.

I spent the next six or so years having the hell beat out of me by bigger boys, and then by the trainers. The beatings became very educational. Soon, I was beginning to use my head, that gave me a better chance, but it didn't always save me. I spent years being pushed relentlessly by my own personal devil, as I thought of him. It was gut wrenching to learn that we were related.

 

Eventually, I got big enough and strong enough and smart enough to win most of my one on one fights, which was a good thing, if you hadn't mastered one on one by about ten, you were shot. You could be shot over anything. It was a hard way to grow up, but you learned quickly and matured quickly or you died.

 

At about the age of ten I started to train with weapons, knives and close quarters first," Edward stopped and rolled up his right sleeve. Anita watched him trace a thin scar. "I got this one in the first week. But I'd already decided that I was going to get out of that hellhole. There were only two ways out, and, I was never going to leave in a body bag. I killed my fair share of children in that first year with weapons. I'd put my all into it, I just wanted out. I started with guns at eleven, two years early. I spent all my time working, I slept only about five hours a night. I practiced the rest of the time. I thought that of I was the best then my devils would leave me alone.

 

My existence changed again when I turned twelve. I was selected on a free floating mission. I was given my gear, a new identity, and a plane ticket. I was to kill a senator's son, I forget his name, but I'll never forget that he thought that I was his friend. I didn't feel anything at the time, but now I regret. I regret a lot from that time.

 

The hit took place in this area, and I decided to live here. I was determined to earn my freedom. Well, at twelve I wasn't ready to challenge Van Cleef for my freedom."

 

Anita couldn't help but interrupt, "But how would you beat him if he trained you to be an assassin."

 

"I wasn't going to out fight him, Anita. I wasn't going to be able to do so then, I planned to out think him. I wanted to manipulate him into letting me go, but that comes later. I went back and continued to train. Soon none of my instructors had any reason to complain. I worked hard, and was the best student in the academy. I spent all my time working and spent no time getting to know anyone.

 

Right before I was told was my eighteenth birthday my number, we were only known by numbers, was announced. This meant I had to see the devil. I told him I wanted him to go freelance because I wanted the challenge. In reality I just wanted out. It was a few days before our graduation ceremony, you became an instructor or one of Van Cleef's guns after that, that I was once again called down to see the devil incarnate. He had left me to stew for a while, but had agreed to my request. I was to leave quietly after the ceremony and no one was to know. The price for my getting out was my silence on the place, and that I didn't mess with his agents."

 

"But what about the ones working with Ricker?"

 

"That, Anita, was a test. if I could get the kids back they'd survive, if not, then we all died. I did what I had to. Anyway, Van Cleef dubbed me Death at some point, and it got around and stuck. That's who I became. And I searched for my past, my parents. I found out that they were dead, murdered, and eventually my Uncle admitted to me that he had done it. They left me letters in storage facilities all over the country. I won't be like my Uncle, Anita. I may not love Donna with an all consuming passion, but she's important to me, to Death, and not Ted Forrester, but to Edward Van Cleef.

 

"How can you tell me all this now?" Anita queried, her expression poleaxed.

 

"Things change. All that was my Uncle's is now mine, being as I was his only heir. The threat is greatly diminished. Besides, I don't want you calling me out at my wedding tomorrow."

 

"I won't do that. I'll stand proudly beside you, Edward. You're a good man for all that you're an assassin, and a bit crazy. You've been a good friend to me. If you think  you can be happy this, I'll support you. But if you hurt those kids, I'll make you rue the day you were born."

Edward laughed, and it had a hollow ring to it. "Some days I already do."

 

"I'm sorry Edward. I'm going to go to bed now. We'll get you married tomorrow."

 

Edward sat on his porch, looking at the sky. All he said was. "I hope I've made you proud."

 

End Chapter Eleven.

 

 

Black Knight

Chapter Twelve: Coming to a Close

 

Edward sat back in his kitchen, rubbing his forehead. From the documents that he had spread out on the table in front of him. The contents of the documents were incredibly troubling, and would require a trip to Texas. It was a trip that the man known as Death, or the Undertaker, did not want to make. It was guaranteed to make him  angry. It was guaranteed to bring back memories, ones that were best forgotten.

 

He sighed and rubbed his forehead again, and raked his fingers through his hair, and wished his problems would just go away. But they never did. You had to face your problems, no matter how painful it was to do so. And he knew that if he didn't then the situation would just fester, and more innocents would be hurt, and more of his Uncle's men would get ideas, and then the more he's have to kill. And for once he wanted to keep the body count down. He just wanted some peace in which to put the completely freed Edward together again. instead, he would have to deal with his Uncle's problems, and he'd have to do it alone. But he was always alone, whether it was because of his skills, his personality, or his heritage, Edward had never been like those he'd been forced to endure,

 

 

 Edward sighed, and retreated to his bedroom. This was his home, and base of operations, not the house which he lived in with Donna and her kids. Some days he still couldn't believe that Donna had postponed the wedding at the last minute. He had no idea why, only that she had. The women was disturbing, to say the least.

 

He packed his suitcase, packing heavy on the hardware, just in case things got messy. Soon, he was locking up the house that he had made into a home.

 

~Texas~

 

Edward stepped off the private plane to confront the demons of his own private hell. Slinging his bags over his shoulder, he moved to the parked Jeep. He soon had the Jeep moving in a direction he had only  traveled once since his release, and like then he did not travel it with a light heart. Indeed, right now Edward felt he had very little to be happy about, very little.

 

Soon enough, too soon, the wrought iron gates appeared before Edward. Stopping in front of them Edward's strongest urge was to leave, and allow this place to self destruct privately, but he knew that he couldn't do that. There were too many innocent lives at stake, too many children he couldn't allow to grow up like he did, to become what he had.

 

The gates swung ponderously open, and Edward  forced himself to drive through them. There was nothing to fear here anymore, and he had the face his past before he could move on. He had to face his face so that he knew who he was.

 

Climbing out of the Jeep, he watched the dust swirl around his scuffed cowboy boots. He looked about the courtyard he had drilled endlessly in, and found it empty. Apparently, everyone was frightened to remind him of what they had put him through. He entered the cavernous building and was immediately descended upon by the school's instructors. He brushed past them, they didn't hold his interest. he unerringly made his way to the children's barracks.

 

"They are to be freed," he announced to the gaggle of men following. "If they wish to stay, or have no where else to go, they can stay. We will not, however, continue with the program as it is."

 

That caused a commotion behind him. "But," one voice managed, "the program as it is turns out top notch assassins. You're an example of that."

 

"There  are two things wrong with that argument, Michael." Edward's voice was colder then the arctic winds. "The first is that this program turns out private killing machines. They were for my Uncle's use, I won't have my name tainted with that. And the second is that I did not become what I am because of this program. I became Death to escape this program."

 

 There was a quiet behind Edward, "If any wish to challenge my judgement, I will deal with  that tomorrow. Good day." Edward walked past  all the instructors and into the barracks. The trainees normally wouldn't be in the barracks at this time, but with all their instructors clustered around Edward, they’d been ordered to the barracks. Edward mused that maybe it was thought that he wouldn't want to spend any time in them. There they had judged him wrong, an a lot of other  places too.

 

 The children looked at him in awe, fright, and reverence. Edward had become and idol to the children in training because he's gotten to leave, something they'd all wished to do at one point or another. Edward smiled at them, and sat down on an empty bed.

 

"I have something important to tell all of you," he announced, and waited for them to gather around. "If you don't want to stay, then you don't have to." A hush, disbelieving silence, followed his pronouncement.

 

"But your Uncle built this compound," one of the braver children said. "Why would you dismantle it?"

 

"Because I don't believe that it's right, and I hated it, and when I was in training I promised myself I'd stop it.

 

Numerous pairs of wide eyes stared back at him. "Go on," he urged, "If you want to leave, you better go back."

 

Several children spring up and began to rush around, other just stared at Edward like sparrows mesmerized by the gaze of a large deadly snake. Sighing, Edward rose and left the room. "You can't do this," the most ardent supported of his Uncle protested.

 

"I just did, Michael. Now, if you have a problem with that, then say so.'

 

"I have..." the man';s voice faded away as his body dropped to the ground. Edward calmly re-holstered the gum.

 

"Any more problems," he asked urbanely. No voice answered the challenge. "Good." Edward commented. "Now, get rid of that."

 

Several people hurried to do as he bid. "I trust there won't be anymore problems with my orders."

 

"Of course not, sir," they chorused.

 

Nodding, Edward headed to his Uncle's former office to sort through all the paperwork that went into running, controlling, and creating an empire of death and destruction. The next few hours were spent trying to sort out the mess that his Uncle had left behind. The more he learned the more disgusted he became. The way that this hellhole had been run was deplorable, the horrors that had gone on inside of it, unforgivable. Edward was more determined then ever to see it closed. so that the information on these paper, or those like them would not be blamed on him.

 

~Next Morning~

 

Edward watched as private buses took children away. The arid Texas soil left steaks of dust  rising into the sky behind them. Edward turned to look at the remaining instructors. "There will be no more beatings, no more killings. I will know if any occur, and I will kill those responsible for them. Am I clear?"

 

A chorus of  'yes, sir's'  answered him. Then one extremely hesitant voice asked, "What about those who completed their training under your Uncle?"

 

"I will continue to support them ans take part of their profits. Ten percent, not my Uncle's eighty- five percent. Those who wish to retire, or leave this business, will be allowed to do so. No mistakes, gentlemen, the same rules apply here." The men nodded silently, remembering what had happened to the three that had challenged Edward. Edward had been awoken in the middle of the night, and was cranky at the time, so the two later  challengers had not had the easiest deaths. And though Edward Van Clef was not the sadistic killer that his Uncle had been, it was readily apparent that he was not a man to tangle with, not if you wanted to live.

 

Edward, bags in hand, moved toward his Jeep. He was hoping not to have to return here any time soon. He'd forged a life through all the hardships he'd faced and he was looking forward to returning to it. Dismantling this place had soothed his soul, and now he knew that he could moved on with his life. It was time to look to the forward instead of back. He was sure that his parents were proud of him, he was, and it the end that was all that really mattered.

 

End Chapter Twelve

Fin Black Knight

 

 

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